Often associated more with larger cities, small towns such as Crookston, Minnesota, often face unique urban planning challenges, including quality, affordable housing and policy pertaining to equity and poverty. Housing affordability is increasingly a major issue in urban planning, with such shortages presenting special difficulties due to correlations with poverty and low-wage workers. Even in small, rural communities, where population has been largely on the decline, quality, affordable housing can still be difficult to obtain – especially for low to middle-income families. These challenges in rural communities can correlate with racial and ethnic divisions. Contributing to the problem is the fact that policy can sometimes either make the situation worse or be ineffective due to public perception and local politics. Government policies have even perpetuated pre-existing market racial and ethnic biases. Crookston, located in the northwest of Minnesota, USA, is a town with just such policy and community concerns. Two key challenges that threaten social equity and long-term economic viability for the community are specifically systemic, entrenched poverty in the Hispanic population and a lack of affordable, quality housing. The State of Minnesota has identified this as a problem in need of policy support. An incorrect understanding of public perception, for example, could easily lead to well-meaning, but ineffective urban planning policy. This study uses a survey instrument to understand the broad opinions, perceptions, and beliefs of the local population regarding poverty, their own financial position, the housing shortage, different mechanisms for helping to solve problems, reasons people are in poverty or are financially successful, and relevant taxation, subsidies, and other measures. Survey results provide assistance area urban planning policymakers in decisions that are most likely to be effective.

AK M., GÜNEŞ GÖLBEY A. - The role of urban green spaces in sustainable urban planning

Sustainable urban development is the phenomenon of battling environmental problems due to reasons such as increasing urbanization and gradual deterioration of the ecosystem. This phenomenon, which is developing around the world, is a subject open to discussion. This article highlights the importance of urban open and green spaces in the discussion of creating sustainable cities. In this context, the sustainable city criteria and the ecosystem services provided by urban open and green spaces were compared. In this context, seven different sustainable city criteria were evaluated: European Green Capital Award, European Green Flag Award, European Environment Agency Urban Metabolism Framework, European Foundation Urban Sustainability Indicators, Green City Index, Reference Framework for Sustainable Cities and STAR Community Assessment System. The findings confirm the importance of urban open and green spaces in terms of sustainable urban development.